5/15/14 - Happy birthday Nocturne! Freunwol isn't my strong suit but I hope you like it!
Eunwol had been gone for a long time, he noticed.
The light haired man couldn't help but frown – Eunwol always tried to make it to dinner on time. Better yet, it was Phantom's time for cooking – he was always much better at it than anyone else, so why would Eunwol bother skipping tonight? Freud heard himself sighing, and found four pairs of eyes looking at him.
"What's wrong?" Phantom asked curiously, peering his purple eyes over at the head of the table.
Freud usually sat at the head – mostly because he was the leader of the heroes, and also because everyone else insisted him to. At his right sat Aran, and at his left usually sat Luminous. Next to Aran was Phantom, and next to Luminous was Mercedes. Eunwol, being the last member to join, sat at the other end of the table.
"Eunwol. He's not here for dinner…" Freud trailed off, looking thoughtful. "To think he'd miss dinner…"
Phantom found himself glancing over at Luminous, a sort of wary look on his face. In Freud's thoughts, he neglected to notice the silent conversation going on between the master thief and his mortal enemy. Aran glanced over between the two, confused at their sudden peace, but thankfully said nothing about it.
"I'm sure he's fine," Luminous spoke, assuring the dragon mage. "He probably got caught up painting, or training…"
Freud frowned, moving to stand up from the table. "It's not right to be eating dinner without him. I'll go and ask him to please come down."
"Wait!" Phantom found himself exclaiming. When Freud's eyes landed on him, he grimaced slightly. His outburst came without thought, and now he was put on the spot. "You… you know how he is when he's painting. He hates being interrupted. I'm, I'm sure we can wait a few minutes for him…"
The mage's face was conflicted, but he sat back down and let out a sigh. "I do hope he remembers." Freud shook his head lightly, to brush the hair out of his eyes. "If you would like, you may eat."
The atmosphere around the table was tense – none of them wanted to be the first one to eat. However, when Phantom gingerly took a bite out of his food, and Freud didn't reprimand him, the others slowly began following his lead. Soon enough, the plates were clean, and the four of them were getting out of their seats to put them into the sink. Mercedes was the first to go – gently placing her plates down and leaving to her room. Aran followed after her, taking up the polearm that had been resting near the door, and leaving the house to train. Luminous went next, placing his plates down neatly and giving a head nod to Freud.
Phantom drifted a bit slower, keeping his eyes on the now alone man at the table. His light eyebrows were furrowed in worry, but he placed his plates at the sink. While he walked past the brown haired mage, he gently brushed his hand against Freud's for comfort and reassurance, before going up the stairs quietly.
It must have been awhile before Eunwol came down, because Freud blearily blinked. He wasn't quite sure when he had fallen asleep, but he straightened himself in his seat to see the long black haired man in front of him. Eun had a look of surprise – almost as if he didn't expect to see Freud waiting for him.
"You're still here?" Eunwol's soft voice asked, taking a seat across from Freud.
"I waited for you." Freud rubbed at his eyes, looking at the food in front of him. There was a large bowl over it to preserve it – most likely the work of Phantom, simply because he was always fretting over the mage.
The man across him frowned. "You didn't have to." He took a bite of the now cold food.
"I wanted to. It's not the same if you aren't here, you know." Freud removed the bowl with slim hands and lifted his plate back towards him. "You're just as much of a member of this group as any of us are."
Eunwol looked at his food, feeling guilty about leaving the brown haired mage here alone. "I was working on a painting. Would you like to see it when we're done eating?"
Freud's face lit up, and he smiled. "I would love to. It must be beautiful if you were working so hard on it."
They finished the rest of their dinner in silence, mostly because Freud wanted to see the painting that Eunwol had worked so hard to work on, and Eunwol wanted to be respectful. The black haired man brushed a bit of hair out of his eyes, and Freud noticed that he hadn't fully washed his hands yet. Plus, the other man looked … disheveled, almost. Had he rushed down here for dinner? Freud found himself frowning.
He ended up finishing his meal first, gently placing the utensils across the plate and lacing his fingers together. The magician tilted his head as Eunwol finished eating and bowed his head for a moment, before standing up from his seat. Freud stood up with his dishes, but blinked as the other man took them from him, and placed them by the sink.
The brown haired man glanced at the pile of dishes, and sighed. It had been Phantom's turn to wash the dishes too … Perhaps he'd have to go tell the man after he was finished talking with Eunwol.
"Freud?" Eunwol's voice called, and the man blinked back to his senses. The long haired man was looking at him curiously. "Would you like to go now?"
Oh- oh right! Freud smiled and nodded, stepping aside for the other man to walk up the stairs first. He trailed after the black haired man, glancing at Luminous's closed door, Mercedes's decorated one, and Phantom's ornate one, with the glass knob. He never understood why Phantom insisted on decorating so expensively when he didn't even live here most of the time, but … Perhaps it was to make him feel at home.
They stopped in front of Eunwol's room, and the man in question opened the door quietly, stepping into the spacious area. Freud looked around at the man's quarters, covered with painting supplies, finished and unfinished paintings.
"Over here." Eunwol gestured to the painting still on the stand, gently brushing at the corner with his thumb.
Freud rounded around the painting and was surprised to see – himself…? The brown haired man blinked up at Eunwol, who seemed a bit embarrassed. However, he looked back at the painting and was surprised. The extent of detail, the tenderness and the beautiful lighting … It was like looking in a mirror.
"I have a bad memory," Eunwol confessed. "I… didn't want to forget you. So I painted you. I hope it's good enough."
Freud looked thoughtfully at the painting, before smiling at the black haired man. "It's wonderful, Eunwol. Fantastic, even. I'm amazed at how skilled you can be." He laughed at Eunwol's embarrassed face, slightly tinted pink from the praise. But, either way, Freud clasped his hands over Eunwol's, and smiled up at him.
"I think with this, you won't ever forget me."